Richland TownshipMontcalm County, MI
The town, home to 2,778 people, lies in Michigan.
Is Richland Township a good place to live?
A town with more to fix than most. Incomes are its weak spot (D−): the median household income is $51K, and just over a fifth of residents live below the poverty line. Its strongest subject is cost of living (A) — a typical home costs about $142K, 1.7 years of the Grand Rapids metro’s $83K median household income. Overall, that makes a D, good for 670th of 697 in Michigan. Nationally, it does better than nearly a tenth of U.S. towns. It lags on health as well: CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 90% of the country. Walkability is weaker too. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 95% of U.S. towns.
Figures: home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · health, CDC PLACES.
What makes Richland Township stand out
Where Richland Township beats most towns.
94% of working residents leave Richland Township for work
Where Richland Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2021
How Richland Township grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far Richland Township is from typical.
Its grades run from A for cost of living (better than 87% of comparable towns) to D− for jobs and income (better than 3%), so the D overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Richland Township: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Richland Township, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Richland Township.
Richland Township sends most of its workers to Alma and beyond, but it trails Seville Township and its other neighbors on schools.
Richland Township earns a D for health
Richland Township: 30% of adults get no exercise outside work. 17% of adults in Richland Township report frequent physical distress; 43% have obesity.
| Richland Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 37% | 35% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 27% | 23% |
| What stands out | Richland Township | MI |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 16.3% | 10.2% |
| More adults with COPD | 11.5% | 8.1% |
| More smokers | 20.3% | 14.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Public schools in Richland Township fall behind 79% of Michigan districts
Each of its 4 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its C−, Seville Township highest at B−.
Two of its 4 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. The largest public high school is Success Virtual Learning Centers of Michigan, with 1,644 students. Also worth knowing: 4 public schools serve Richland Township, with 2,480 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vestaburg Community Elem SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 247 | C |
| Vestaburg Community High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 6–12 | Grades 6–12 | 307 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MI on state tests and graduation
The average trip to work in Richland Township is longer than in most of Michigan or the rest of the country
Richland Township has 272 jobs for its 1,041 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 39.7 minutes, against 24.2 across Michigan.
Employers in Richland Township added 53 jobs between 2011 and 2021, to 272. The top destinations are Alma (7%), Mount Pleasant (6%) and Home Township (4%). Half the trips to work are shorter than 18 miles.
| Richland Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 40 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 21% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $51,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
Richland Township faces a low natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
On expected storm and flood damage, Richland Township sits below just over three quarters of U.S. communities. Of the losses FEMA expects in the town, 51% come from inland flooding and 18% from tornadoes.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Richland Township: four seasons and pleasant summers
Richland Township’s peak summer temperature stands at 82°F, against 82°F in Michigan’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
In Richland Township, 11.9% of the land is conserved
Trails run 2.3 miles in 4 parks and preserves. Richland Township’s density of trails stands at 0.1 miles per square mile, where Michigan’s towns sit at 0.3 and U.S. towns at 0.4. The biggest park or preserve is Edmore State Game Area, at 1,266 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Edmore State Game Area | — | 1,266 |
| 2. Vestaburg State Game Area | — | 907 |
| 3. Bass Lake Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Richland Township
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of Richland Township
About 8 of every 100 Richland Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
About Richland Township
Township in Michigan, United States
Richland Township is a civil township of Montcalm County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,646 at the 2020 census, down from 2,778 in 2010.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 36 sq mi
- Elevation
- 837 ft
Richland Township’s neighbors
4 towns share a border with Richland Township.
| Town | MI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richland Township | #670 | D | A | — | C− | D |
| Home Township | #454 | C+ | A+ | — | C | D |
| Seville Township | — | — | A | — | B− | C− |
| Ferris Township | — | — | A | — | C | D |
| Fremont Township | — | — | B+ | — | B− | C |
Seville Township, Ferris Township and Fremont Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Richland Township, Home Township, Seville Township, Ferris Township and Fremont Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Richland Township with a neighbor →
Questions about Richland Township
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Richland Township, MI a good place to live?
Richland Township grades D overall, better than 9% of U.S. towns and #670 of 697 in Michigan. It grades D for health and C− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D−.